captive, caged, chained
elephants, expected to entertain

not just elephants
there are animals, many
who are engaged for human entertainment
at the cost, of their grave endangerment

clicking a selfie
with the caged animals
do you think that’s cute
were you not made aware
of their horrific abuse

from elephants to tigers
pangolins to turtles
all classified as species, endangered

illegal trade, illicit trafficking
for personal, profitable gains
all leading to these species, pained

© Lishaka Gulati

The above poem is written in support of the global campaign initiated by the NGO, World Animal Protection, India to gain support worldwide for banning the trade of wild animals.